He’s a big deal in the Ocean State, dancing since 1984, and continues to bust a move (and bad driving) since he retired from the Providence police force in 1989, entertaining crowds at Christmastime ever since. I finally connected with the prancing law enforcement officer on Facebook, Tony Lepore, Sr., is his real name; he is the real deal and took me on.

“He is an icon for Providence,” one observer remarked. The kids love him — love watching him dance — and then they try imitating his moves. Check out his Facebook avatar, posing with two young ones. In the larger photo, you will find him teaching young people how to dance. But directing Providence traffic is not just fun and games for Lepore: “It’s an important job, because it’s people’s safety,” Lepore reminds the reporter. “You can’t be lackadaisical going out there.”

Coordination is the name of the game. Keep traffic flowing and have fun while doing it. Obeying the rules, keeping people safe, means more people can have fun. A bigger principle emerges out of this event: Peace, prosperity, and joy are impossible without law and order, without clear parameters to define the accepted and prohibited. No one can play if anything goes.

In a nation where the rule of law faces unprecedented attacks (viz. No Enforcement, No Peace), the bright example of a smiling cop keeping residents and drivers safe and sound brings hope as well as holiday cheer.

Then I heard about his recent termination from the Providence Police Department, or rather the city’s craven, politically motivated move not to bring him in for Christmas 2015. Fox News Insider reports:

For more than 30 years, retired Rhode Island Police Officer Tony Lepore has brought good cheer to the city of Providence with the famous dance moves he’d perform while directing holiday traffic.

This rude behavior toward police was not an isolated incident. In West Hartford, Connecticut, a Dunkin’ Donuts employee rebuffed an officer: “We don’t serve cops here.” When the Providence, Rhode Island, Dunkin’ Donuts wrote the hashtag insult instead of the officer’s name, Lepore learned about it and boycotted the shop. His fans followed suit, and then the national press picked up the piece. When the Dancing Cop demanded an apology from the company, the Providence police force (under the thumb of liberal progressive political machine) let Lepore go.

Another cop pushed aside, and why? “The Providence Police Department said Lepore misrepresented the department and committed a “disservice” to the city.”

The dust-up following the #BlackLivesMatter hit on a Dunkin’ Donuts coffee cup is just too much. Let’s state the facts plainly; Rhode Islanders and all Americans should take notice, too. This Black Lives Matter movement, and now the fallout of one of Providence’s finest, is more than a spat over who speaks for whom in a municipality. This is a left-wing assault writ large, an attack on law and order, authority and integrity, respect, leadership, coordination, and fun.

Lepore’s interaction among kids is more than just good community building. He fosters respect for the police in general, and teaches citizens from youth upwards not to view law enforcement with mistrust, but cooperation, as public servants trying to keep the cities safe and make the world a better place. The Left and its violent allies in Black Lives Matter oppose these values.

This time, they picked the wrong fight, and more people all over the country are standing with Tony. And so will I. Enough is enough. #BlueLivesMatter, #AllLivesMatter, and so does Tony’s.

I have followed the Tony Lepore The Dancing Cop situation closely and Arthur Christopher Schaper’s article is absolutely correct. People such as Rodrigo Pimentel who started the Facebook event “Stand against Racism” in East Providence painting Tony Lepore to be a racist is so unfounded! Pimentel can be seen on his Facebook page wearing a Bernie Sanders for president tee shirt appears to an extreme left winger. For him to come out and attack Lepore calling him a racist is absolutely wrong!

Mike678

Do you really think Rodrigo cares? His objective is to punish those that would speak out against his agenda, facts are irrelevant; the narrative is all important. To these people, the end justifies the means.

Areader

Rodrigo Pimentel doesn’t even know the Tony Lepore narrative. He showed us that when orchestrated the Left Wing Progressive Facebook event. He also hasn’t punished Tony Lepore, what he has done is brought Lepore more popularity and private shows!